AboutSally A. Kane Expertise As a recent law school graduate who excelled in law school, I can answer questions regarding the law school experience including preparing for and applying to law school, excelling in law school, law review, legal writing tips, the law school curriculum, exam success, financing law school, balancing work and school, clerkships and externships, job interviewing and more. I do not answer homework questions.
Experience I have thirteen years’ experience in the legal field, ten as a litigation paralegal and three as a corporate attorney. During law school, I juggled many priorities including a full time job, law school and a newborn baby. In law school I served as a law review editor, wrote for student publications and completed two externships, one with the Pennsylvania Supreme Court and one with the United States Court of Appeals for the Third Circuit.
Publications I have published law and career related articles in a variety of publications including Legal Assistant Today, The Legal Intelligencer, Juris and The Journal of Legal Nurse Consulting.
Education/Credentials I possess a B.A. in Writing from Edinboro University, a Paralegal Certificate from Duquesne University and a J.D. from Duquesne University School of Law.
Question I'm just starting my high school career, and i want to know what i need to have to get into a good law school. I am in all honors classes, and double honors in math(taking an 11th grade class in 9th grade). I have a 3.2 GPA avrage for my freshmen year. Would I have a better chance of getting in if i dropped the honors classes and had a 3.9 GPA instead?
Answer Hi John,
Your high school grades are not considered in the law school admissions process. While top-notch high school grades will help you get into the best colleges and universities, it is possible to gain admission to top law schools with high grades from an average undergraduate institution.
At this early stage of your academic career, pursuing honors courses at the cost of higher grades is probably okay. However, you will ultimately want to graduate cum laude or higher to get into the best university.
To gain acceptance to a top-tier law school, you will need top grades in college (a 3.5 or above) and a high LSAT score. (For more information on the LSAT see: http://legalcareers.about.com/od/educationandtraining/a/LSAT.htm.) Law schools do consider the quality of your undergraduate institution as well as the difficulty of your major and coursework. However, your overall GPA and LSAT score are the most important factors in determining admission.
